Chicago Cubs Rumors: Justin Verlander’s name continues to pop up in reports

Big-league talent on the move?

After trading Eloy Jimenez and Dylan Cease to the White Sox and sending a package to the Yankees for Aroldis Chapman last summer, the Cubs’ system doesn’t have the depth it once did.

Chicago Cubs

Now, those players occupy big-league roster spots. And if you want to pull off a deal for Justin Verlander, some of those former top talents will be on the move. Sure, Detroit wants to shed some payroll and get younger. But they aren’t going to simply give away their veteran players.

Names like Albert Almora Jr., Javier Baez and Addison Russell could all be in the mix in such a deal. The front office clearly won’t give up Kyle Schwarber and guys like Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant are untouchable. The Cubs enjoy depth superior to most big-league teams. But that doesn’t mean they’re ready to deal from this roster.

And, to be blunt, I’m not sure there’s enough left in the farm system to get a deal done. That’s not to say there isn’t talent in the minors. But the high-impact guys like Jimenez are in the low levels of the system – far from big-league ready.

Given the workload and contract, the more I think this out, the more I come to one conclusion: Chicago and Verlander are a nice idea – but only in theory. Between the dollars and sought return, working out the logistics before the deadline seems like an awfully long shot for both sides.

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